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Jury awards three Canadian undergraduate photography students one year’s tuition and an exhibition at the AGO

May 21, 2014 (Toronto, ON) — Supporting the future of Canadian photography, the Aimia | AGO Photography Prize has announced the winners of the inaugural Aimia | AGO Photography Scholarship Program. Valued at more than $20,000 CDN, the scholarship program is intended for full-time students — Canadian or international — who are entering their final year of study toward a bachelor’s degree of fine arts in photography at one of eight participating post-secondary institutions across Canada. From a field of more than 110 applicants, the jury has awarded Kristiane Church of the University of Manitoba, Marvin Luvualu Antonio of the Ontario College of Art and Design University and Paige Lindsay of Ryerson University $7,000 CDN each toward tuition for their final year of undergraduate study. An exhibition of their work will be displayed inside the Weston Family Learning Centre Community Gallery at the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) beginning in November 2014. Their schools will each receive a $1,000 honorarium.

• Kristiane Church lives in Winnipeg and is currently completing her BFA at the University of Manitoba. Her video and photographic works engage issues of representation and feature highly stylized, constructed environments.

• Marvin Luvualu Antonio was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, and is of Angolan descent. A student at OCAD University, his interdisciplinary work explores the topics of identity politics and the artist as subject.

• Paige Lindsay was born and raised in Victoria, B.C. A student at Ryerson University’s School of Image Arts, her practice is informed by a love of language and storytelling. She often combines text and image to create a hybrid work in which photography and text intermingle.

“We are gratified by the enthusiasm and prodigious talent that the scholarship submissions attracted. This national scholarship program is the next step in the evolution and expansion of the AIMIA | AGO Photography Prize,” said Matthew Teitelbaum, Director and CEO of the AGO. “The AGO is pleased to be hosting an exhibition featuring this year’s very talented winners in the coming months.”

“Congratulations to these three extraordinary photography students who show such exceptional artistic potential,” said Vince Timpano, President and CEO of Aimia in Canada. “We hope the Aimia | AGO Photography Scholarship Program will help to build a Canadian legacy of impact in photography and truly support this country’s future generation of image makers.”

Eight respected and established visual arts institutions from across the country nominated students for the Scholarship Program this year. A finalist from each participating school was selected by an internal competition, before being submitted to the Scholarship Program jury. A selection of their works can be seen online at www.aimiaagophotographyprize.com.

• Shane Arsenault of Alberta College of Art and Design (ACAD); • Corrine Beaumier of Concordia University; • Michelle LaSalle of Université du Québec; • Adrienna Matzeg of Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University (NSCAD); and • Alina Senchenko of Emily Carr University of Art+Design.

From the eight finalists, a jury of experts — Sophie Hackett, associate curator of photography at the Art Gallery of Ontario; Erin Shirreff, winner of the 2013 AIMIA | AGO Photography Prize; and Kelly McKinley, Director of the OMCA LAB at the Oakland Museum of California — selected the three winners.

Of this year’s winners the jury wrote, “We’re thrilled to be offering these inaugural scholarships to Kristiane, Marvin and Paige. Each of them demonstrates a restless experimentation and a unique view on the ways images are made and operate in the world. They have embraced photography as an expanded practice — their work includes performance, installation and participatory sculpture, as well as still and moving images. We’re pleased to support their final year of undergraduate study.”

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ABOUT THE AGOWith a collection of more than 80,000 works of art, the Art Gallery of Ontario is among the most distinguished art museums in North America. From the vast body of Group of Seven and signature Canadian works to the African art gallery, from the cutting-edge contemporary art to Peter Paul Rubens’ masterpiece The Massacre of The Innocents, the AGO offers an incredible art experience with each visit. In 2002 Kenneth Thomson’s generous gift of 2,000 remarkable works of Canadian and European art inspired Transformation AGO, an innovative architectural expansion by world-renowned architect Frank Gehry that in 2008 resulted in one of the most critically acclaimed architectural achievements in North America. Highlights include Galleria Italia, a gleaming showcase of wood and glass running the length of an entire city block, and the often-photographed spiral staircase, beckoning visitors to explore. The AGO has an active membership program offering great value, and the AGO’s Weston Family Learning Centre offers engaging art and creative programs for children, families, youth and adults. Visit ago.net to find out more about upcoming special exhibitions, to learn about eating and shopping at the AGO, to register for programs and to buy tickets or memberships.

The Art Gallery of Ontario receives additional operating support from the City of Toronto, the Canada Council for the Arts and generous contributions from AGO members, donors and private-sector partners.

The AGO acknowledges the generous support of Aimia, Signature Partner of the Photography Collection Program.